What Walmart’s patent for audio surveillance could mean for its workers
Walmart recently patented a sound sensor system designed boost efficiency by collecting a range of audio data that can determine their employees’ performance based on sounds. Earlier this year one of Walmart’s largest competitors, Amazon, patented a smart wristband to ensure that their warehouse employees’ hands are always moving. As technology evolves, employers are finding innovative ways to track employee performance, and it’s not just Walmart and Amazon. UPS uses sensors to check whether their drivers are wearing seat belts, and according to Brian Kropp, vice president of Gartner’s human resources practice, some companies are using technology that allows them to track how quickly employees are typing, as well as chair-sensors that can track how much time they spend away from their desks. Kropp says that many companies are quickly adopting these “nontraditional” management practices as new technologies allow them to collect data in unconventional ways. While Walmart did not comment on whether they plan to implement their new patent in retail stores, the company did allude to the technology's potential as an efficiency hack.
See "What Walmart’s patent for audio surveillance could mean for its workers", Jena McGregor, The Washington Post, July 13, 2018